A balding Australian's thoughts on everything happening in sports

June 11, 2018June 12, 2018

AFL Fantasy 2018 – Round 12 Wrap Up

I had a TON of swag entering this weekend. The 2018 narrative from the Large Fry’s & Coke continued with consistent scores ranging between 80-110. I can’t complain, especially considering my big boost in ranking (jumped up 4,544 spots to be exact). Time to spend my hard earnt $$$ and REALLY make my climb up the ranks.

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My Team

1778 – The year that Dustin Fletcher entered the AFLI didn’t have many passengers in Round 12 and it helped me score a fraction under 1800. For one of the rare times this year my captain choice let me down and Robbie Gray’s third straight 60 has him at the top of the rage trade list. Still, it was an above par effort from the squad this weekend.

What Does The Round 13 Bye Mean?

BYE Teams: Lions, Pies, Bombers, Giants, Demons, Roos

WITH four teams coming off the bye we are facing our first week with six teams on the sidelines. A lot of Giants and Demons are popular players, leaving some owners struggling to field a full 18. It’s a smart investment to trade in players fresh off the bye from the Blues, Hawks, Eagles or Bulldogs as they will be playing for the next two weeks.

Plus 3’s

Ollie Wines, MID, $600K – 138WINES got things started with a bang on Friday night in a big way. He was on just nine at quarter time before erupting, scoring a career-high against the reigning premiers. He could be a very unique trade target this week.

Josh Kelly, MID, $739K – 166IT was nice to see Josh Kelly look like the player we thought he was going to be this season. His breakout 166 could be the start of an enormous second half of the season. High on my trade target list.

Zach Merrett, MID, $653K – 126THERE hasn’t been a lot of positives for Zach Merrett owners this season, but his slow start seems to be behind him. A season-best performance will give coaches plenty of confidence moving forward.

Negative 3’s

Robbie Gray, FWD/MID, $590K – 66A third straight score in the 60’s has alarm bells ringing. With Robbie Gray sent back to his role as a deep forward, Hinkley isn’t giving him a chance to put up massive numbers. I had to say I told ya so but…

Dayne Beams, MID, $696K – 50I feel for all those players who brought Beams in on the back of his awesome three weeks. He was averaging over 125 during that stretch and coaches were expecting more of the same. Instead, they were rewarded with a measly half-century. Gross.

Angus Brayshaw, DEF/MID, $660K – 47WITH a breakeven of 39 and 299 points in his last two matches Angus Brayshaw was brought in by thousands of coaches. Unfortunately, he failed to fire along with a lot of his Melbourne teammates. Those who made the investment are hoping that those two stellar showing from the Dees hard nut wasn’t just a fluke.

Noteworthy Numbers

BULLDOGS gun Jack Macrae (161) needs to have another big game to avoid a price decrease in Round 13. It isn’t out of the question that he can reach that lofty total, with other popular picks Brodie Grundy (138), Patrick Cripps (135), Max Gawn (133) and Robbie Gray (133) all owning big breakevens as well.

ONCE again St Kilda dominates the low BE game led by none other than Logan Austin (-16). Dons defender Mason Redman (-12) was close to claiming the lowest breakeven and he will be a popular trade target off his bye if he keeps his spot. Must have cash cows who won’t be resting this weekend and are in for a price jump include Bailey Rice (-2), Stefan Giro (0) and another Saint Josh Battle (-1).

IT’S also worth mentioning that Gary Ablett (121) and Andrew Gaff (121) are the form players in the last three weeks not named Mitchell and Macrae. A huge number of form defenders will rest this weekend, but Luke Ryan (101.7) continues to make a name for himself down back. Toby McLean (114) and Jarrod Witts (105) are the form picks of the forwards and rucks respectively.

Quickfire Trade Thoughts

IN – RESTED premiums will be the popular trade-ins heading into Round 13. Names like Tom Mitchell (MID, $805K – BYE) and Jack Macrae (MID, $875K – BYE) may cost an arm and a leg, but their numbers speak for themselves. Elliot Yeo (DEF/MID, $666K – BYE) and Kade Simpson (DEF, $636K – BYE) will be sought after defenders while James Sicily (DEF/FWD, $616K – BYE) is also worth a look at. Toby McLean (MID/FWD, $738K – BYE) is as close to a must have as possible this week as well.

THERE are still solid rookie options out there to help generate some $$$. Saints trio Austin (DEF, $362K – 84), Rice (DEF, $318K – 87) and Ed Phillips (MID, $376K – 83) all gave new meaning to the term ‘junk time’ scoring over 60 points each in the second half to all produce for their coaches. Also look at the aforementioned pair Giro (MID, $212K – 57) and Battle (FWD, $193K – 69) if you need playing rooks.

OUT – IS it time to part with Robbie Gray (FWD/MID, $590K – 66)? The Power forward needs to lif this output to avoid the axe from owners and I’m definitely wary of his bad scores. Sam Jacobs (RUC, $508K – 75) might survive until the big boys come off their bye but he is fast bleeding cash as well.

THE upcoming bye is a perfect time to offload a few cash cows. The likes of Charlie Spargo (FWD/MID, $366K – 70), Zac Giles-Langdon (FWD, $323K – 52) and Oscar McInnerny (RUC/FWD, $332K – 51) loom as the best players to move on and they could be a great stepping stone to a big name player.

Looking Ahead

MORE injury news will surface throughout the week around the availability of players like Rory Laird and Dustin Martin, but there’s no word right now. Devon Smith ended the game with ice on his calf but a week off will help and he should be fine (we hope). Alex Pearce is another popular name set to miss some footy with a thumb injury likely to sideline him for around a month. The bye week comes at the perfect time for the Giants with Dylan Sheil, Stephen Coniglio and Lachie Whitfield all eager to enjoy some rest. Another group of popular names like Alex Witherden and Sam Menegola were forced to leave the ground at times, but they played out their respective contests. Dyson Heppell will also enjoy a week’s rest after coming up second best in a BIG hit with Luke Hodge.

SPEAKING of that hit, Hodge has been cleared of any wrongdoing, but the same can’t be said for Michael Walters. The Dockers forward has been offered a one-week ban for striking Jake Kelly after his brain fade late against the Crows.

IT’S time to get some serious talent into my team. The likes of McInerney and Giles Langdon are probably going to be traded out and I have my eyes on Ed Curnow, Elliot Yeo and Kade Simpson as upgrade targets. Robbie Gray will be lucky to survive but team selection might save him. Either way, I should have eight premium midfielders by rounds end, giddy up.